She grins across at me again. “Good, huh?” she chuckles. “Now the boys think I’ve crossed some imaginary, moral line to save their asses, and they're going to suck up to me for the next few days. Just you watch. It’s going to be fucking awesome. Anything I want is mine.”
“Are you shitting me?” I laugh. “You played them?”
“Sure did,” she says proudly. “I sure fucking did.”
Chapter 2
“You know I love you, right Tullz?” Noah says, grabbing his sister and wrapping her up in a massive bear hug that has me raging with jealousy even though I know, that no matter what, I’ll be in those arms as soon as he releases her.
“Get off me, you big turd,” Tully groans, trying to pull herself free from her twin brother, though naturally, she has no luck at all, which is when Rivers joins in on the torture. “Noooooo.”
The boys' wicked chuckles have me falling back into the couch, watching her torture session with amusement as she gets smothered. Usually, I’d be more than happy to dive in and save Tully from their wicked ways, but not today. After all, she played them. Played me. She deserves a little takedown.
Though, it’s not like they know she played them. This is just the boys’ way of showing their love and gratitude for her sticking her tongue down the principal’s throat to save our asses. No matter how annoying they need to be about it or how much they hated watching it go down.
Tully somehow gets her hands upon Noah’s chest before giving him a hard shove, but all that does is send her backward into Rivers, whose arms curl more firmly around her, locking her in tight. “You two are such dickheads,” she groans.
“Don’t act like you don’t love it,” Rivers murmurs in her ear, making her momentarily melt back into him before she realizes what she’s doing and sorts herself out.
Tully turns in Rivers' arms, pressing herself into him and smiling up at his devilishly handsome face with that same man-eating smile she’d given Principal Evans. “You and I both know that I’m not the one acting like I don’t love it.”
His eyes focus heavily on her as he draws in a slow breath, silently loving having her in his arms while Noah groans out his annoyance at seeing his best friend and sister like this.
Tully raises her chin, hovering her lips just an inch away from Rivers, testing his willpower as she silently dares him to make a move with an excited sparkle glistening in her green eyes.
“Whoa,” Noah hurries in. He grabs Tully around the waist, pulling her from Rivers' arms before hauling her across the room and throwing her down on the couch beside me. “This is not about to happen. Not now, not ever.”
Tully looks across at Rivers with that same sparkle still lighting her eyes. “And why the hell not?” she says, purposefully teasing her brother. “We all know he wants to.”
“Fuck me,” Noah grunts under his breath.
Rivers blanches and I can’t help but smother a smile. He shakes his head but the smile playing on his lips doesn’t go unnoticed before he turns on his heel and stalks out the front door.
With that, Tully pulls herself off the couch and disappears right behind him.
“I can only imagine what they’re doing out there,” Noah grunts, crashing down onto the couch, taking Tully’s vacated spot before pulling me onto his lap until I’m straddling him and looking down into the green eyes which I’m quickly falling for.
It’s crazy how quickly he’s managed to capture my heart. Only a few short weeks ago, I would have laughed at anyone who suggested that Noah Cage would have fallen for me. Not in a million years did I expect this and I’m so damn happy it did. Getting to know Noah has been nothing short of incredible. I’m at the point where imagining my life without him would be devastating. He’s my guy and I wouldn’t have it any other way.
Noah’s thumb running over the pink scar that sits just above my cheekbone pulls me out of my head. His eyes linger on the scar and nothing kills him more than seeing it clear as day on my face while knowing he was the one who put it there.
He knows just as well as I do that it was an accident, but that will never change the fact that he’ll never forgive himself for hurting me. He’d do just about anything to take that day back and I’m right there with him, but it is what it is.
Just when I think he’s about to bring it up for the millionth time, I thank my lucky stars when he lets out a deep sigh and changes the unspoken topic. “What are you thinking about?”
I smile down at him and shake my head. “Nothing that you don’t already know,” I tell him.
That cocky signature grin of his crosses his lips, desperately making me want to bite them. “Let me guess,” he murmurs. “It has something to do with the fact that you’re crazy about me and that every time you look at me, you melt like butter. Sounds about right?”
I press my lips together and shake my head. “Actually, I was just thinking about that party with Spencer and how he touched me in all the right places. What do you think about a threesome with him?”
His face falls as his mouth pops open. He eyes darken as he watches me with strained curiosity. “You’re fucking kidding, right?” he questions, cautiously.
I wink and lean into him before pressing my lips to his as a chuckle creeps up my throat. “I guess you’ll never know.”
Noah smiles against my lips as his hands wind around my waist and pull me in tighter to his body. In the blink of an eye, I’m thrown across the couch and land with an ‘oft’ as Noah comes down on top of me, pinning me down with his large body. “Tell me, Spitfire,” Noah murmurs against my lips with his fingers gently trailing up my inner thigh. “Did he touch you the way that I do?” he questions. “Did he make you scream his name? Did you leave claw marks in his back the way you do to mine? Did he make you come over and over again until you couldn’t possibly take it anymore?”
Noah’s hand winds around my hair before he pulls my head towards the side, opening my neck up for his lips. He kisses me and a groan instantly pulls from deep within. My legs hook around his waist and he doesn’t miss the opportunity to press himself into me. “Answer me, Spitfire,” he murmurs against my neck. “Did he make you feel as good as I make you feel?”
“No,” I moan, tilting my head higher, hoping he doesn’t stop the sensual assault on my neck. “Nobody makes me feel the way you do. Nobody does what you do.”
I feel his smile against my neck. “Damn straight, baby.”
With that, Noah dives straight in and makes me feel like my soul is trying to escape my body. I don’t know how he does it, but there’s something about Noah Cage that gets me so damn hot.
His hands roam over my body, slipping under my tank and touching me just right. He presses down into me, only slightly relieving the ache I feel for him while my hands fumble for his shirt, desperately trying to pull it over his head, needing that beautiful inked skin of his on mine.
Noah pushes me to the point of no return and just when I think I’m about to climb aboard the orgasm train, he pulls away. “No,” I call out, reaching for the smirking idiot. “What are you doing?”
The next words out of his mouth are like getting a bucket of ice cold water tipped over my head. “That’ll teach you to suggest a threesome with a guy like that.”
Devastation flares through me but the way he stands to attention shows me that he’s just as turned on by my body as I am by his, which has the grin slipping back over my face. “Oh, I see,” I laugh, desperately wishing he’d come back to me. “So, you’re not totally opposed to a threesome, just as long as it’s not with Spencer.”
“Just as long as it’s not with another dude,” he confirms.
Liar. Noah Cage doesn’t share. Period. But then… I can’t possibly skip a chance to mess with that gorgeous mind of his, especially after he left me unsatisfied and desperately craving his body. “Really?” I breathe. “So… all I’d have to do is pick someone? Any preferences? Blonde? Brunette? Oh, how about a redhead? I heard they can get a bit feisty between t
he sheets.”
His eyes flash with uncertainty and it’s almost enough to have me bursting out with laughter, but he knows me well enough to know I’m screwing with him.
At least, I think he does.
I press my lips harder together, trying to smother the grin that wants to spread wide across my face, but as for the mischievous sparkle shining through my eyes… well, there’s not a damn thing I can do about that, and it’s exactly what Noah needs to confirm his suspicions.
He’s back on me in a second.
Noah slides his arm under my back and pulls me in tight to his chest while shaking his head. “You’re a turd,” he grins. “Do you really think I’m capable of sharing you with anyone? No matter if it’s a boy or girl or a fucking feisty redhead?”
I smile up at him, absolutely loving how good it feels to get under his skin. “I know you’re not,” I tell him. “You’re an overprotective, dominating, possessive asshat and I absolutely love it, but leave me all needy and unsatisfied like this again and I’ll be forced to take action into my own hands.”
His eyes become heated once again. “Can I watch?”
“Why don’t you take me down to your room and I’ll let you do whatever the hell you want,” I whisper, brushing my lips against his before biting down on his bottom lip.
He groans low in his throat and before I know it, his hands are under my ass, lifting me up off the couch. The next thing I know, Noah’s slamming closed his bedroom door and throwing me down on his bed.
Noah and I emerge from his room an hour later, though not because we want to. Noah's stomach has been growling and his need to eat eventually overtook his need to get naked. But don’t get me wrong, the second he shovels food down his throat, he’ll probably throw me over his shoulder like a caveman and hurry me back to the confines of his bedroom, right where I want to be.
We walk hand in hand up the hallway to find Tully and Rivers spread out on the couch. Rivers sits at one end with his feet propped up on the coffee table while Tully is at the other with her feet in Rivers’ lap and his hand gently running up and down her leg. “That was quick,” Tully grunts, keeping her face shoved deep in her phone. “What’s going on? Did things get awkward? Did something end up in the wrong hole?”
Noah messes up her hair on his way past before dropping down onto the opposite couch and pulling me down with him. “You want the rundown?” he questions. “I’ll give it to you. Every last steamy detail if you really want to know.”
Tully turns green and nearly gags. “Ugh. No thanks,” she grumbles, scrunching up her face as Noah grins in victory.
Noah tosses a cushion at Tully. “What’s for dinner? I’m hungry.”
Tully bats the cushion away and shrugs. “I don’t know,” she grumbles. “Mom and dad went out. We’re on our own.”
Noah groans as though the thought of nothing being cooked in their family kitchen right now is absolutely devastating, though, with the way his stomach was grumbling, I don’t doubt it is. “What do you want?” he sighs, realizing it’s either up to him or her to get it sorted, and from the way she’s slouched into the couch, I’d dare say dinner is on him tonight.
“Pizza,” Tully throws back at him.
“No,” he groans. “That shit takes too long. I’m hungry now.”
Tully’s head snaps up. “Tough shit. I want pizza.”
Noah narrows his eyes on his sister and I watch on with interest as Rivers ignores it all, probably used to these ridiculous little fights they always have. To me, they’re still hilarious. Nothing is funnier than watching these two get under each other’s skin.
“Go cook me something,” Noah begs.
“No. Go cook yourself something. I want pizza.”
Noah lets out a huff, picks me up off his lap, stands up, and drops me back on the couch before stalking off into the kitchen, mumbling something about Tully making a shitty housewife one day.
Tully rolls her eyes, lets out a huff of her own and snatches her feet out of Rivers’ lap. “I swear, that moron drives me crazy,” she says before getting up and stalking off into the kitchen behind Noah.
I grin as she leaves before chuckling when they start arguing over what to make in the kitchen.
“Come on,” Rivers says, getting up from the couch and walking towards the door. “It’s safer for us outside. This shit is going to go on until Noah is fed.”
I laugh as I pull myself up off the couch and follow Rivers out front where he walks over to Noah’s Camaro and pulls open the door. He starts searching around for something as I drop down onto the front steps of the house. Before I know it, Rivers reappears with a cheesy grin, holding up what must be Noah’s secret stash of candies. “Hell yeah,” he laughs. “I knew it was in here somewhere.”
Rivers makes his way over to me and sits down beside me before placing the candies between us. We dive straight in. “Shit, that’s good,” Rivers says, pulling his phone out and tapping away on it for a minute.
“Tell me about it,” I mumble around the yumminess. “It’s even better knowing it’s Noah’s.”
Rivers laughs and leans back against the top step before stretching his long legs out. “I know, he’d fucking kill me if he knew I stole this shit, but I’m safe because you’re eating them too.”
I roll my eyes, knowing he’s right as I pop another candy in my mouth. “So, what’s going on, Henley? Jumped any bitches lately?”
I let out a groan. I’ve been wanting to get Monica and Candice back for what they did to me a few weeks ago, but so far, it hasn’t happened and I have a feeling that’s because Noah has been trying to keep me away from them. If they show up at parties, we end up somewhere else. If they’re in the cafeteria at lunch, we eat outside.
Noah knows I can take them both easily, but I have a feeling he’s trying to avoid me getting in trouble and stirring shit. It will eventually happen and when it does, it will be magical.
“No,” I tell Rivers. “I’m going to get them when they least expect, and when I do, Monica is going to go down like a sack of shit. Look,” I say, holding out my hand, “I’ve been growing out my nails in case I need to gouge any eyes out.”
“Jesus,” he laughs, looking down at my blood red nails. “They look like fucking claws.”
“I know,” I laugh. “But they’re kind of sexy.”
“Damn straight, girl,” he agrees before falling silent. Uncertainty flashes in his eyes and he scrunches up his face with a cringe “Can I be honest?”
“I’d have the shits if you weren’t.”
He looks across at me with the late afternoon sun shining upon his dark hair and dark eyes, startling me with just how attractive he really is. I’ve been so caught up with Noah that I’ve never taken a second to look. No wonder Tully is crazy about him. If I didn’t have Noah, I probably would be too. “I don’t think you should beat the crap out of the girls.”
My mouth falls open. He’s got to be kidding, right?
“What?” I blanch. “Are you insane? Do you not remember what they did to-”
“No, no, no, no,” he rushes out. “You’ve got me wrong. Those bitches definitely deserve a smackdown, but I think you need to give a little thought to how you deliver it. They’re expecting you to try to jump them. I see it every time you walk into a room, they brace themselves. You need to get them in a way they’re not expecting.”
My brows furrow as I consider him. “Like what?” I question, really only knowing one way to hand out my smackdowns and it generally comes in the form of a good ass whooping.
Rivers shrugs. “Don’t know,” he grins. “That’s for you to figure out. Do the dirty work yourself.”
I watch him for a moment and I can’t help but think of all the times he’s disappeared with Noah. I’m struck with the feeling that things like getting even and revenge isn’t something that’s new to him. “You’re a real shady bastard, aren’t you?”
Rivers winks. “It’s not always a bad thing.”
I c
an’t help but feel there’s a hidden meaning in there somewhere but I just can’t work it out. I don’t get a chance to think on it more as a car pulls up right behind Noah’s Camaro. I stare at it in confusion, wondering who the hell it could be when a little man in a black shirt gets out with three boxes of pizza. “I guess Tully won,” I murmur beside Rivers as he gets up to meet the pizza guy, pulling his wallet out on his way.
Rivers scoffs. “You really think Noah would cave?” he throws over his shoulder.
He’s right. There’s no way in hell Noah would cave to Tully that easily. “Then… how the hell did we end up with pizza?”
“Tully wanted it,” he states with a shrug. “So, I ordered it.”
I smother a smile. That’s so damn sweet, but when the hell did he call for pizza?
River’s takes in my confusion and chuckles to himself as he pays the pizza guy and hands me the three boxes. “There’s an app for everything,” Rivers explains.
Hmm. I should have known.
As we walk back up the front steps of the twins’ home, I consider Rivers for a moment as my heart warms with the gesture he’s just made for her. Going out of his way to give her what she wants even though they’re in there now cooking dinner. “You’re so in love with her,” I murmur quietly as Rivers reaches for the door.
He shrugs his shoulders. “Maybe,” he muses. “I don’t know.”
“I think you do.”
“I think I could if I let myself,” he murmurs softly. “All I know is that she’s the most beautiful woman I’ve ever met.”
“Yeah,” I laugh. “You love her.”
As we walk in through the living room, we hear Tully and Noah still bickering in the kitchen. Rivers shakes his head and I place the pizza boxes down on the coffee table before trailing into the kitchen.
I stop in the doorway to peek in at what I’m about to walk in on to find Tully standing at the sink moping about peeling potatoes while Noah stands over the stove with a boiling pot of water, yet after twenty minutes of being in here, they haven’t managed to actually cook anything.
Unbelievable: Haven Falls (Book 2) Page 2